subsection_Harnessing_the_knowledge_creation__.tex

\subsection{Harnessing the knowledge creation side of models: NGO}

Such pre-hypothesis `lessons' from conceptual models are often treated as side-effects of modelling.  Here we argue it could and should be one of the focal points of modelling. To do so, we advocate an approach to modelling that places the above mentioned side-effects at center-stage and hence maximizes the potential for discovery and learning something novel. In line with previous work, we call the approach ``non-goal oriented'' (NGO) [Hogeweg] (it is also known informally as ``exploratory modelling'' [REF?]). Since there is no goal, `side-effects' become `main effects'.  By NGO we therefore mean: studying the dynamics of models in its most unbiased form possible. In what follows, we address the exploratory, and open-ended nature of NGO modelling, its relevance, and how it complements other modelling philosophies.